S&P 500 hits record high on prudent Powell

Reporter: Yudho Winarto | Editor: Yudho Winarto

KONTAN.CO.ID – JAKARTA. Wall Street beamed with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq hit record highs on Friday (27/8). Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled the United States central bank will remain patient, trying to nurse the economy back to full employment.

Launch Reuters At 10:21 a.m. New York time, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 239.76 points, or 0.68%, at 35,452.88, the S&P 500 was up 34.50 points, or 0.77%, at 4,504.50, and the Nasdaq Composite was up 137. .84 points, or 0.92%, at 15,083.65.

All 11 major S&P sectors rose, with energy, materials, and communications up 1%each.

Three major indices are set for weekly gains, with the tech-dense Nasdaq looking to outperform the S&P 500 and the blue-chip Dow.

Among earnings-driven moves, retailer Gap Inc jumped 3.7% after raising its full-year net sales forecast as it re-socializes with easing pandemic restrictions.

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In remarks at the Jackson Hole economic symposium, Powell said discussions about when exactly to start scaling back a $120 billion bond-buying program remained unresolved and had to be adjusted for the economic health risks posed by the Delta variant of the coronavirus.

“Even though a lot of other Fed presidents have come out and said ‘we’re going to do this sooner’, a prudent Powell is going to make sure that the economy actually recovers,” said Kim Forrest, chief investment officer of Bokeh Capital Partners in Pittsburgh.

“You don’t want to get people car-sick while you’re driving economy.”

Earlier, Wall Street had fallen from its all-time high on Thursday on concerns over developments in Afghanistan and hawkish signals from Fed officials.

Also Read: Wall Street weakens, investors fear Fed’s change of direction and Afghanistan conflict